A report launched last night has revealed that 76 per cent of children, who were abused and neglected come from Christian homes.

Of this, 75 per cent children were iTaukei.

In light of this, Minister for Women and Social Protection Lynda Tabuya, said faith-based organisations need to step up and mitigate the issue.

The report is titled: Violence Against Children in Fiji. Data was collected between 2017 and 2019.

Ms Tabuya said the report is not only a document but a beacon of hope for faith-based organisation to work towards the common goal to address the issue of negligence.

“Most children who dwell in our streets are afraid to return home because they go through some form of abuse,” she said.

“And this a sad reality that opens many doors for them to deal with social issues.”

Ms Tabuya stressed it’s not the government’s job alone to address this issue they need communities and faith groups to sharpen their words and put into action to create a better environment for our children.

“We must not fail our children by the resources we have and reliant resources the work is not done yet,” she said.

The report noted that the Northern Division was the dominant area of reported incidents.

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